Waking Up in District One
by sngsngsnyrslp
Summary: Gale and Madge travel to District One to celebrate her twenty-first birthday and wake up after a night both don't remember.
1. Waking Up

**I do not own the characters!**

**This is what happens when I listen to Katy Perry's "Waking Up in Vegas" while reading Gadge fanfics, enjoy!**

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Chapter One

Madge's head was pounding and the sun was burning her eyes. Whose arm was draped over her side? Whose face was in the crook of her neck? Why was she only in her underwear? At the thought of the indications of those few facts she rolled off the edge of the bed, careful not to wake her intruder.

"WHAT THE FUCK?" Madge screamed at the sight of a practically naked Gale in her bed.

Gale groaned, who was yelling this early in the morning when he was hungover? He squinted as he opened his eyes to the sight of a half naked Madge.

"Ohhh fuck! This is not happening Undersee! You took advantage of me!" He thrust his finger in her face accusingly.

Madge cocked her head and rolled her eyes. This was ridiculous. As far as she could tell no one took advantage of anyone. I mean she didn't feel any differently. Surely it felt differently after you had sex, right?

"You did this!" She pushed his finger out of her face and put hers in his face instead. "You kept shoving drinks down my throat! It's your birthday Madge you said! You're always so straitlaced you said! Not so straitlaced now Gale!" She felt something poke her in the thigh. She jumped back. Realizing she less than a foot away from Gale while wearing nothing but her underwear she shuffled to wrap herself up in a sheet.

"Get over yourself Undersee. It's morning wood! It has nothing to do with you! Besides you're nothing I haven't seen before!"

"Shut up Hawthorne! Oh God! It touched me!"

"I'm sure a lot more than that touched you last night! You weren't complaining then!"

"Will you just shut up and let me think! Let's consider the facts." She stared at him wide-eyed.

"What?" He shot back confused.

"What is that on your neck?" She grabbed the sides of his face roughly and tossed it to the side to get a better look at his neck. "Ohhh shit. That's a hickey."

"Goddamnit Madge! Do I look like a goddamn teenager to you?"

"Oh God oh God oh God oh God! I did that to you!"

"No shit." He ran his hand through his hair. This was confusing. Did his drunken self want Madge or something? Because his sober self could hardly stand her. But she had looked amazing in her underwear. Who knew there was such a curvaceous figure under those dresses and mechanic overalls?

Madge turned away from him to look through her purse. "What are you looking for?" Gale called out.

"Our money, check your wallet." Madge stared back at him her mouth open.

"What? You're worrying me!"

"Our money is gone. There's like five bucks in here!"

He ran to his pants on the floor. There was nothing but a picture of him and Madge at the casino from yesterday and a ten-dollar bill. "Well it looked like we had fun." In the photo Gale had his arm thrown over Madge's shoulders and he was looking at her smiling as she grinned at the camera. He felt Madge approach behind him. She laughed. "Where are my crown and my boa?" Her eyes searched the room. They were nowhere to be found.

"This is all going to be fine. I'll just call my mom. She'll transfer us some money." A sigh of relief escaped his lips. This was all going to be over and he wouldn't have to discuss the implications of what happened with Madge.

"Don't call your mother! Then I'll be roped into this with you!"

He stared at her incredulously. "You are roped into this. She knows we came here for your birthday weekend!"

"Just no! Then she'll hate me!"

Gale rolled his eyes. She was so difficult "Then we'll call Peeta and Katniss! They're the reason we're in this situation in the first place. If they had showed up we wouldn't have shared a room and we would've had someone to babysit us as we got trashed."

"Yes!" Madge ran to the phone at the center of the hotel room and dialed their number. "Peeta? Yes you owe me big time I had to sleep in a hotel room with Gale Hawthorne because of you! Can I ask a favor?"

As she ran Gale caught sight of suspicious bite marks on her shoulder. Oh God. She didn't need to know about those. At least, not until she was less freaked out about last night. I mean yes it was shocking, maybe even a little unnerving, but that's it right? It didn't have to mean anything, not if they didn't want it to... Did he want it to? Before the harpy snatched his sleep from him it had felt nice spooning with Madge. And he definitely couldn't deny that he was incredibly beautiful. Even now. Hungover from the night before she was radiating. Her hair was wild, yes, but on her it just looked so sexy. Her makeup was smudged perfectly around her eyes, making her look sultry. Goddamnit. He was royally fucked.

"Yeah thanks. Whatever. We need money to get home… We woke up and it was all gone." Another pause. "Yes this is your fault! You're the responsible one!" Another pause. "Thank you Peeta! You're an amazing friend!" She turned to Gale. "He said okay. The money should be in there in about six hours."

Gale already knew that doughboy would give them the money. He turned and grabbed a clean pair of jeans out of his suitcase. This was going to be a long six hours alone with Undersee in the hotel room.

Madge walked toward the bathroom, maybe the water would wash away everything from last night. As she turned to lock the door she caught sight of her back.

"You bit me!"


	2. Winning and Secrets

**Sorry it took me so long to update. I was having a lot of trouble trying to figure out where to go from there. But now I do so I should hopefully be updating more frequently. **

**Gadge is love!**

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Chapter Two

District One was _the_ district of excess, extravagance and debauchery. Where else would anyone want to celebrate their ability to legally drink than there? This had been Gale's thought exactly as he offered the idea to Madge over lunch. They worked together at the military base. While Gale was a Sergeant and mostly spent his time training new recruits, Madge spent most of her time underneath hovercrafts as a mechanic. Her face was usually covered in grease when they met up for lunch.

They were friends, but most of the time they couldn't help but disagree on most everything. There was always one small detail that caused an argument between them.

"What?" She questioned over her salad.

"District one for your birthday weekend. We can leave Thursday afternoon after work, get there that night then leave Sunday afternoon. We'll be back by Monday!"

She narrowed her eyes at him. Why was he suddenly being so nice to her? "What's in it for you?"

Gale looked at her faking a hurt look. "I'm hurt!" His hand clutched at his heart. "This is for my awesome friend's 21st birthday!"

Her eyes continued to stare at him not amused.

"C'mon we can even invite Katniss and Peeta." Her face continued to stare at him blankly. "Alright, I've always wanted to see District One. C'mon! I'll even pay for your ticket! My gift to you!"

She considered the idea. She did miss Katniss and Peeta. "Alright if they give you the green light then so will I."

Gale grinned at her over his sandwich. This was going to be a weekend to remember.

"C'mon Gale you have to spend money to get money!" She sat by his side grinning cheekily as she sipped her vodka martini.

"Shut up and put your money where your mouth is then sweetie!" He didn't expect for her to step up and bet a few of her $100 chips.

"Hit me!" She exclaimed and hit the table giggling. This is what people did in the movies not in real life, especially not her. If it hadn't been for Gale then she would have probably just stayed home and watched a good movie, maybe gone out to dinner with a few friends.

She caught sight of her cards and gasped. She showed her cards, a five of hearts, a seven of diamonds and a nine of diamonds. 21.

The dealer gave her her chips and smiled at her.

Madge was jumping in excitement, which was leading to a lot of intrigued looks from the men at the bar. Gale gave them all dirty looks as he grabbed Madge's shoulders. "You should charge them for the show you're giving," Gale gestured his head at the men next to them. Not that Gale could blame them. Even he couldn't keep his eyes off of her. Her legs looked incredibly long in her high heels, and the white dress she was wearing was almost an ode to her old Reaping dress, but better, definitely better. It was almost modest from the front, because of its neckline, which gave away nothing, but whenever Madge turned around, her entire back was exposed. Not to mention how tight the dress was, Gale had no idea how Madge could be comfortable. But it was her birthday, and she had wanted to dress up so he wouldn't say anything about it and not to mention he didn't mind it. Not one bit.

She even forced Gale to dress up for the occasion. He was wearing a suit and tie. She claimed it made him look suave and when she had said it he could swear he felt his cheeks heat up in embarrassment.

Her body froze and she hurriedly walked away, embarrassed.

"It was a joke Undersee!"But when she turned around he could see that she wasn't upset, she was laughing.

"Oh God!" She's kneeling on the ground keeled over in laughter. Oh, she's drunk.

"My my my folks what do we have here? A drunk Madge Undersee? Well I never!"

Her eyes make their way up to his and her laughter filled his ears again. "I'm not drunk yet! Two more drinks then yes I will be drunk! You should be drinking too! Help me up and I'll buy us a bottle of whatever's good!" She graciously grabbed his arm and positioned herself so that no one could get a look up the skirt of her dress.

Gale shook his head laughing, leave it to Undersee to be a lady while drunk, forever prim and proper that one.

"What are you laughing at?" She demanded, narrowing her eyes at him.

His hand was on the small of her back as he led her toward the booth meant to cash her winning chips. Her skin was warm and smooth. It felt so nice in contrast with the rough calloused skin on his hands.

"Let's get back to the hotel, alright? Then we can get us as drunk as you want, okay?" He hailed a cab outside of the casino.

Madge leaned on Gale's side when they were both sitting in the back of the cab.

"Gale?" Her voice was so quiet.

"Yes?" He looked down at her. She looked so sweet, clutching his arm and leaning on him.

"Why don't boys like me?"

He shook his head at the blonde. Boys didn't like her, boys _loved _her. Guys were always asking him who he ate lunch with, if they were dating, and whether or not it was possible for him to give them her number. The answer was always the same: Madge, no and no. "You're crazy. Guys like you."

She sat upright and looked at him, shaking her head back at him. "No, they just want me," she looked down, "for _that_."

At first he was confused, for what? But when he noticed the blush on her cheeks he knew. "All of them?" He was incredulous. She had dated plenty of guys in District 2, every single one of them didn't try to get to know her?

She nodded, looking embarrassed and ashamed.

"Jonathan?" She nodded. "Will?" She nodded again. "What about Jesse? Don't tell me Jesse too?" But again she affirmed it. Goddamn it Gale lived surrounded by sex-crazed disrespectful assholes and all of them were trying to steal Madge's virginity. Wait. Did that mean Madge was a still a _virgin?_ No wonder all these guys were flocking to her. She was their goddamn conquest. But she couldn't just be that right? Because how would they know she was a virgin? Madge wasn't one to let out her deepest darkest secrets to just anyone. After all he hadn't even known she was still a virgin. Maybe it was the blonde hair or the exaggerated hips and ass, not to mention she had a pretty good rack on her. She was so womanly. But that didn't make you easy. Guys could be really stupid though.

Although Gale and her had a tumultuous relationship, he was a rock in her life. Steady and unmoving. Always there for her with a smart ass remark. Usually she wouldn't discuss this with him, but it was her birthday and she was alone. She was always alone. It wasn't her fault that she was curvaceous, but that didn't automatically mean she was willing to let just anyone get into her pants. Though that's what they all expected.

"Well, do you tell guys your _virtue_ is still intact?" Maybe that was the problem. Hell, he didn't know. Gale casually dated, all of the girls he dated virtues were very much incomplete.

Madge's eyes bulged out. "Of course not!"

Gale shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know what you want me to tell you Madge. Guys are pigs."

Madge giggled, laying her head back onto his shoulder. "You're not a pig, Gale. You're always nice to me." When it counted at least.

He smiled, letting his head rest on hers. "That's because I like you, Undersee."

Her head angled up, and she whispered, "I like you too, Hawthorne."

Usually he would not have been phased by it, but it was the way her lips brushed his earlobes, sending a shiver down his spine that forced his attention to the girl next to him.

If her tousled hair hadn't done it for him, it was definitely the look in her eyes that did. Goddamn. If Madge did this to the guys she went on dates with then no wonder they were itching to put their hands all over her, the same thought was running through his mind at that moment. Fuck. The thought was on repeat in his head. He was fucked. Drunk Madge was hitting on him and he wasn't entirely sure sober Gale would be able to handle it.

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Review please!


	3. Why not me?

**Sorry I take forever. I've had a bit of writer's block and I've been focusing a lot on Escapists. Sorry!**

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Chapter Three

Madge was trying her hardest not to seem as if she were giving Gale the silent treatment, but she had absolutely nothing to say to him. Every time her mind veered in the direction of what had transpired last night, her cheeks grew hot and she could hardly breathe. What could it mean? Her and Gale got along just fine, but mostly they argued. But they were the good kind of arguments. The kind that made your face flush, your mind sharper, with lots of back and forth. Gale was one of the only people she had ever known that could keep up with her witty repartee. He challenged her. God, how he challenged her, and with absolutely everything. Not to say Madge minded much. She lived for overcoming obstacles. Easy, was not in her vocabulary.

The entire day Madge had felt Gale's unrelenting eyes on her. Following her wherever she went, but he didn't say a word. Just watched silently. It was unnerving.

Was it a mistake? Well, yes it was a mistake. If she had been sober she would never have kissed Gale. She especially wouldn't have lost her clothes in the process. That didn't sound like her at all. Boys barely got to second base with Madge. Some didn't even get a first kiss, and especially not on the first date.

When Gale wasn't looking she couldn't help but gaze at him. Was it his hair that drew her to him? So dark. Was it his mysterious eyes? Those eyes that revealed nothing to her. Steel grey, and hard not to lose yourself in. Though at the moment they were hidden behind a pair of mirrored sunglasses. How convenient, so she couldn't see exactly where his eyes were looking.

They were out by the pool, reading in the sunlight. If Gale thought it was hard to keep his fantasies about Madge at bay before, then now it was impossible. Her deep purple bikini set off her pale body. He couldn't help himself but scowl at every guy who glanced her way, though he could hardly blame them. Her cleavage was modest, leaving only hints of the top of her breasts to be touched by the sunlight's rays. Then she turned over, revealing her other half to his eyes. Goddamn. Was she trying to torture him? If only he could be that damn bathing suit. He was jealous of two pieces of damn fabric. How they got to graze the most precious parts of her body. He wondered what exactly he got to graze of Madge's the night before.

Memories from last night came back to him in pieces. Her mouth hot on his. Skin on skin. Gasping breaths. Guttural moans. Gale hadn't had a hot make out session like that since he was seventeen. Though he hardly minded it. In fact, he wished he could reenact it to see if it had been a fluke. If him and Madge had as much chemistry as he remembered then there was definitely something there that was worth taking a shot at. Perhaps even despite that there was something between them that was worth taking a shot at. Here was a woman who understood the military lifestyle. A woman who could get down and dirty; she was a mechanic after all. Smart as a whip too, but as beautiful and soft as a sunset. Strong yet delicate. And stubborn. Never one to back down from an argument. He'd always wanted a woman with convictions. A woman who called him out on his own shit too. No girls did that now. He was the war hero. How could you talk shit to a war hero? It seemed almost unpatriotic.

For the life of him, he couldn't recall what had started it all. Had it been her? Had it been him? If it had been him, then he deserved a pat on the back. But if it had been her, then that could mean so much more. It could mean that she herself was thinking the same things as he. Maybe they could start something. Then he could tell all of those guys who asked about her that her name was Madge and yes she was in fact his girl. Part of him yearned for that.

His eyes stayed staring at the page, but he could hardly focus his mind enough to actually be able to read the words. It was too focused on Madge Undersee, the gorgeous woman laying next to him, perpetually slathering on sunscreen in order to ensure she not get a sunburn.

Laying by the pool, over-thinking the details of her "relationship" with Gale Hawthorne had left Madge exhausted. Sleep was the only thing on her mind, and now she could go to sleep in peace knowing that she at least had some money to her name. Thanks to Peeta, at least.

She was on the balcony, relishing in the beauty of District One had to offer. Bright lights. It was nothing like District Twelve. It was gaudy, and yet there was something about it that called to her about it. Somewhere to go for a good time.

Her back was to the hotel room, brushing the knots out of her hair from the pool water. Thankfully, she hadn't burned, but actually had a little tan to show for the trip. Not nearly as much of a tan as Gale, who was at least five shades darker then he was before. Even though he didn't need to get sun, he still sat by the poolside with her. It had been incredibly hard not to stare. She had known he was muscular, but hot damn, he looked downright rock solid in his blue swim trunks.

"Hi," she heard a voice whisper from behind her. Her face blushed; he had caught her while she was daydreaming about him.

"Oh, hey. Care to join me?"

Gale stepped out onto the balcony standing beside Madge. He had changed into his pajamas, which consisted of plaid bottoms and a white t-shirt. His feet were bare.

They stood in silence. It wasn't particularly awkward, just comfortable silence. The couple staring at the lit buildings and casinos.

She turned to him, "Since tomorrow is our last night, do you think we could go to the casino one last time?"

Gale smirked, "You didn't get enough of them taking your money the first time?"

The blonde shook her head. "No, just to get a drink or something. Have a good time our last day here."

"Sure Madge, it's your birthday weekend."

It was a lot more awkward then she had expected. Both of them lay in bed, trying to get comfortable on the small bed. Gale took up most of the bed. There was a lot less bed to share when now that they weren't spooning.

"I can sleep on the floor if you want," he offered with a tone that she couldn't quite decipher. Was it disappointment? Was it annoyance?

But she didn't want him to sleep on the floor. It was kind of nice to have him be so close to her for at least some amount of time, no matter how short. "Oh no! It's fine, we're two adults we can share a bed." Madge turned her back to him, attempting to take up less space.

Silence filled the room. The room was filled only with the sounds of their breathing, and the sounds from outdoors, which muffled by the closed screen door.

A few minutes later, Gale's voice filled the air.

"Madge? You awake?" He softly touched her bare arm.

She turned toward him, staring into this eyes, trying to adjust her eyes to the dark.

"Why not me?"

What was he talking about? That was probably one of the vaguest questions she'd ever been asked.

"Why not you what?"

Gale ran his hand along her cheekbones. "You've dated every one of my friends, and a lot of the other men on the base."

Madge interrupted him, insulted. "What are you trying to say Gale?"

His head shook. "I'm not trying to say that Madge. I'm trying to say that you gave them all a shot, but you never thought to give me one?"

With widened eyes and an adjustment to the darkness, Madge could see the offended look on his face.

"Is there something wrong with me? Is it because I'll always be the dirty Seam rat to you?" Gale was exposed now. Finally, he had let his vulnerabilities show. That had been after all, the real reason why Gale never tried to date Madge, because she would always be the Mayor's beautiful daughter, always beyond his reach.

Her hand reached out to touch his arm reassuringly, "No, it's not that."

"Then what is it, exactly?"

Madge considered the question. "Well, you've hated me for about 90% of your life. Something like that doesn't just go away, and you're not particularly fond of me most of the time now."

"None of that matters. It's like ever since this vacation started, I've got a peek into what my life could be. Taking vacations with you, and spending most of my time with you. I like it. I like it a lot." His hand moved from her face down to her waist. "Just don't push me away, Madge. Just give me a chance."

Her eyes had long since left his eyes and were now focused on his moving lips. Oh, they were so full and had been so soft from what she could remember. Soft, full, warm and incredibly inviting. They were suddenly in a smirk. As her eyes made their way back to his eyes, she could see they were shining with amusement.

"What?" She asked innocently.

"Do you want a repeat of yesterday Miss Undersee?" He was grinning cheekily now that he could tell she was at least as into him physically.

"Well I would prefer to remember it this time."

Gale chuckled, as he covered his lips with hers. He could feel her smiling through the kiss.

Oh, it had been no fluke. The same chemistry was still passing between them. She was someone Gale would actually take the time to write home about.

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**Review please!**


	4. Dream

**The last chapter. :( It's just so bittersweet! Thanks for reading!**

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He felt soft lips kissing his neck, trailing up to his ear. Then she lightly scraped her teeth over his ear lobe.

"Mmmmmm Madge," he moaned, gripping her hips tighter than before.

She moved away from him, shooting him a sexy mischievous grin. "I love how easily pleased you are with just a few kisses."

With raised eyebrows, Gale replied, "Really? Easily pleased?" He smiled back at her and pushed her down onto her back. "Mmm Ms. Undersee, we'll see just how easily pleased you are."

Madge threw her head back and giggled, gripping his shoulders.

"Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep." The sound resonated through the previously silent air of his apartment.

Gale groaned sitting up in bed. "Fuck. Fuck. Fuck!" The realization hit him hard. He hadn't gone on vacation with Madge. They hadn't gotten drunk and made out in their underwear. They hadn't shared a bed. He hadn't confessed his feelings for her. And she hadn't accepted them and reciprocated them. Nothing had changed. He was still her lunch buddy from back home, and it seemed as if that was all he would ever be to her. But that's not what he wanted. In fact, he hadn't wanted just that from her for a while. Every time she discussed one of her dates with him, he had to hide his clenched fists underneath the table. It wasn't exactly easy to confess your feelings to your best friend. Gale had found it pretty amusing that in his dream they were friends with a love-hate relationship. They weren't really like that at all. Similar to the dream, he was her rock, as she was for him. And they had their fair share of heated discussions, but they never left them with any ill feelings toward one another.

_Goddamn_. He thought, raking his hands through his hair, _Why does my life have to suck? Why couldn't that just have been real? _Then he could have woken up with the girl of his dreams.

Several hours later, he was staring at Madge from over the lunch table watching her intently. Her hair was up in a bun with small strands sticking out, as usual and her grey coveralls were covered in grease. The only thing that wasn't covered in grease were her hands, which he knew she washed rigorously before coming to lunch, similar to when a surgeon was prepping for surgery. No makeup was obstructing her natural beauty, so her freckles were clearly visible. In his dream he had kissed them, over and over again and it had made her giggle. He had never actually heard her giggle. Laugh? Yes. Giggle? Never. Also as usual, he thought she looked absolutely beautiful.

Gale hadn't even been paying attention to what she was saying. Instead he had been trying to figure this conversation out. What the fuck could he tell her to make her understand? To make her forget that he wasn't just her friend? He interrupted her, placing his hand over hers.

She stopped talking and looked at him confused and expecting an explanation.

So he began, "I had this dream last night. We went to visit District One for your birthday weekend, which had taken a bit of convincing. Incidentally in the dream we had this amazing witty repartee thing going on, mixed with this love-hate friendship."

Madge laughed. "You and me? Love-hate? I can't even imagine it."

He laughed softly. "Yeah it was interesting."

"So what did we do?" She asked with shining eyes, curiosity taking the better of her.

"Well, we went to a casino on your birthday and I lost a lot of my hard earned money. You, on the other hand, won at blackjack. Then we got _really_ trashed and I cannot remember what exactly happened that night, but in the morning we woke up with no money."

Her head tipped to the side thoughtfully. "There are just so many possibilities to how we could have wasted all of our money, especially in District One. Hmm. Was it just us?"

"Well Peeta and Katniss were supposed to go with us, but they bailed and we were forced to share a room and sleep in the same bed. And since we weren't on the best of terms, it was kind of a huge deal." He paused. "Anyways. The morning after we called Peeta and begged him to send us some money, which he obviously did. And something else happened."

Madge's eyebrows furrowed. "What else?"

Gale was extremely conscious of her small hand still remaining underneath his larger one.

"Well," he ran a hand through his hair. "Okay the night, in the dream, the one that I couldn't remember, well we woke up in our underwear. In bed. Together."

Her gaze remained trained on his, giving away absolutely nothing to him. Was she disgusted by the thought and maybe she was trying not to hurt his feelings? Or was it something else?

"And we were both hungover, and all I know is that might have made out."

"What else happened?" Her voice was neutral.

"Yeah, the day after that was kind of awkward and when we were in bed I confessed my feelings for you," Gale said as a-matter-of-fact as he could. He didn't really want to to confess any of his feelings until he could gauge his reaction. So far, it didn't really seem as if she was going to give him anything to gauge other than what he could only perceive as indifference. That would be the worst. Well maybe complete revulsion would be pretty bad too actually.

"What's up guys?" Gideon sat in the empty seat between Gale and Madge.

Gale glared at him. He liked Gideon enough, but this couldn't have been any of a worse moment for him to stop in. Not to mention that Gale didn't really like the way Gideon was looking at Madge. He was looking at her like she was a piece of meat. He was looking at her like he was going to be the same type of guy as she had described in the cab in his dream. Though she didn't seem to notice. Her eyes were too focused on him.

Gideon looked down and noticed Gale's hand over Madge's. His eyebrows raised in intrigue. "What? Hawthorne are you confessing your love to Undersee or some shit?"

"Goddamnit Gideon. We're kind of having a private conversation here. Would you mind?"

His eyes flew back and forth between the couple. "Fine. I'll see you later, Undersee." He left with a wink that Madge hadn't seemed to notice.

Gale wanted to punch his face in. "What did that mean?" He asked suspicious and self-conscious. Maybe this was all wrong. If she already had a boyfriend, then he was going to back off. After the Peeta-Katniss-him love triangle, he wasn't interested in fighting another guy for a girl. Especially, when it now felt as if he was always going to lose to the other guy. Forever friend-zoned.

"Nothing, we're working on a project together or more like I'm working while he sits by talking."

"Oh."

"Was he right?"

"Who?"

She bit her lip, obviously nervous. "Are you trying to- uhm confess your feelings for me?" Her cheeks tinted red. Gale just wanted to lean over and kiss them.

"Ahh fuck." He rubbed the back of his neck, though he tightened his grip on her hand. "I'm fucking in love with you, Madge."

It looked as if she had stopped breathing.

"Say something, Madge. Anything."

"Is this a joke?"

Gale looked at her, surely with a shocked expression on his face. Why would he torture himself over a stupid joke?

"No... Fuck. I'm sorry. This is all fucked up." He rose from his seat and walked out into the hallway, trying not to trip over his dignity.

"Gale!" He heard her yell, chasing after him.

He didn't turn to look back at her. "Just leave me alone. I'll be fine. Just give me a minute."

She was running now, and grabbed his arm. "Stop."

"What? Are you going to tell me that you just want to be friends? That you don't see me as anything more? I don't want to hear it. I get it. I went through the same shit with Katniss."

Her hand rubbed his arm, attempting to soothe him as he was rambling now. "I thought you were just fucking with me, Gale."

"Why the fuck would I do that?" He sat down against the brick wall, burying his head between his knees.

"I've been waiting for this," she confessed sitting down beside him. "But I just thought you'd always see me as the mayor's daughter. Forever stuck up."

This made him laugh. It was just like his dream, except different.

"You're a mechanic for God's sake. You're as far away from the girl you were in District Twelve as possible." He turned to face her, grabbing her small face in his hands. They overwhelmed it. "I didn't think you would ever be able to see me as anything other than the Seam rat who sold you strawberries."

"I didn't even see you as that when we were in District Twelve." He looked down at her lips. "Can I kiss you now?" She asked timidly.

But Gale didn't answer her with words, instead he pressed his lips against hers. In the dream, he had thought nothing could feel better than the kisses they shared then, but he was wrong. Oh, how wrong he was. This was a thousand times better. Her lips were softer than in his dream and the passion that passed between them was even more potent as well. It was astounding in the best kind of way.

As she moved away from him, he peppered kisses all over her freckles, which earned a giggle from her.

The sound made his heart soar. Finally, the giggle he had been waiting for.

It was so perfect. Gale hadn't even minded the way the smell of grease and oil was overwhelming on her. Instead, his smell receptors had chosen to focus on the rosewater scent of her shampoo.

She grinned, "Not so bad, Hawthorne. Not so bad."

"You neither, Undersee. Well, for a stuck-up Townie anyway."

She pushed him away from her, but his hands had moved down to her waist by then and he refused to let go. Not now the she was finally his.


End file.
